Sanibel Captiva Island Message Board

[meshell824]

Hi, has anyone heard if the red tide has moved into the Sanibel/Captiva area. We are due to arrive on Sat July 16th just curious. I hope Emily stays clear of the islands. Thanks for any info anyone has.

[Kim]

As of last Friday, there was no red tide at Sanibel or Captiva. There was a 'slight' reading at Boca Grande.

This weeks results will not be released until Friday. It will be interesting to see what, if any, effect Dennis had.

No news here is good news. If there is an outbreak we will report on it....otherwise, if you see nothing there is none.

[Liz Captiva]

Heard that the red tide is back.... Any updates from someone who is down there? thanks!

[Gary]

Check out the red tide thread in the general archives.

http://forum.bestofsanibelcaptiva.com/viewtopic.php?t=1580

[Kim]

Newspapers and Lee County are saying its back as far as Boca Grande with some dead fish washing up on Captiva. (WINK's story cracked me up)

According to NOAA:

Thursday, August 11, 2005
A harmful algal bloom has been identified from northern Pinellas to northern Lee County. Very low impacts are possible in northern Pinellas; patchy low to moderate impacts are possible from southern Pinellas to northern Sarasota County through Sunday. Patchy low to high impacts are possible in Charlotte and northern Lee County through Sunday. Dead fish have been reported in the past few days from central Pinellas to southern Manatee County.

FWRI tests on Thursday and official results will be out tomorrow, so I've been waiting to see those before jumping the gun. Susan Cook will be sending me the results and I'll post them here.

I'm going to close the Archives so there isn't several threads going for the same info. We can watch for red tide here....

[Kim]

Red tide rolling in
Dead fish fill Lee waters

By KEVIN LOLLAR
Published by news-press.com on August 12, 2005


Red tide is back in Lee County with a vengeance.

Water samples, taken last week, show high concentrations of the toxin-producing red tide organism in Boca Grande Pass.

Fishermen and boaters are seeing dead fish in north Pine Island Sound from Redfish Pass to marker 11, just north of Jug Creek.

"That whole area of Pine Island Sound is nothing but unadulterated dead fish, and the stench is so bad you can't fish it, no way," said Capt. Harvey Hamilton, who runs Native Charters out of Four Winds Marina.

"You don't have to see the red tide. You just look at the pelicans, sea gulls and man-of-war hawks: There's nothing but birds diving and eating half-dead fish."

Hamilton has seen dead pinfish, snook, grunts, catfish and mullet.

Red tide causes some strange marine mammal behavior, Hamilton said.

"I've been around dolphins all my life, and when I saw a herd of dolphins heading right at me, due east off Burgess Island, I knew it was bad," Hamilton said. "They were moving to get out of it."

Jimmy Jensen, of Jensen's Twin Palms Resort & Marina on Captiva, hasn't seen dead fish around the island.

"We took some people to Cayo Costa yesterday, and there were fish on the beach. It was fish every so often, not big piles," he said. "There's no dead fish here, but it's so close that it could be here tomorrow."

Red tide is a natural phenomenon caused by a single-celled alga called Karenia brevis, or K. brevis, which produces a powerful toxin.

Under normal concentrations, less than 1,000 cells per liter, K. brevis causes no problems.

For reasons not fully understood, K. brevis sometimes undergoes a population explosion, or bloom, and the added toxin renders shellfish inedible, can kill fish, marine birds, marine mammals and sea turtles, and causes respiratory distress in humans.

Fish start dying when concentrations are between 50,000 and 100,000 cells per liter; samples taken in Boca Grande Pass showed more than 1 million cells per liter.

"Our biologists said it was pretty nasty with dead fish," said Jeremy Lake, spokesman for the Florida Fish and Wildlife Research Institute. "They didn't quantify 'pretty nasty,' but for biologists to say something is pretty nasty, it's got to be bad."

The bloom now in Lee County was detected Jan. 6, 20 to 30 miles off St. Petersburg.

It moved south to Sarasota, eventually reaching Lee County but disappeared from Lee County in April while continuing farther up the coast to Tampa Bay. It returned in early July in lower concentrations, only to disappear again.

In the area from New Port Richey to Sarasota, up to 23 miles offshore, red tide has killed a range of fish, from baitfish to goliath grouper, as well as sponges, soft corals, worms, mollusks, crabs and sea urchins.

Mote Marine Laboratory in Sarasota reported 58 dead loggerheads and Kemp's ridley sea turtles have washed ashore since June 1, mainly in Sarasota County, with a few from Charlotte and Manatee counties, and scientists suspect red tide in most of the deaths.

K. brevis moves with winds and tides, so predicting where it will go is educated guesswork.

"It has been quite intense up here, on and off," said Rich Pierce, director of Mote's Center for Ecotoxicology.

"The forecast from NOAA (National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration)'s satellite imagery was that there's a chance it could expand south, so it's very possible that you could be getting some of the preliminary effects of it. We just don't know for sure."

Scientists are taking samples in Lee County this week. Results will be available today or early next week.

[Kim]

Red Tide has indeed returned. Below are the results of sampling taken yesterday and tested at FWRI.

Lee County
VERY LOWb - Boca Grande Pass
MEDIUM - Captiva Pass
MEDIUM - Redfish Pass
not present - Sanibel Island (2)
----------------
VERY LOWb = 5,000 to 10,000 - Possible respiratory irritation and shellfish harvesting closures
MEDIUM = 100,000 to <1,000,000 Respiratory irritation and probable fish kills

Click on the thumbnail for full size and color. You must be registered and logged in to view pictures.

[Sanibellover]

I was just wondering is there anyway to gauge about how long the Red Tide lasts? We'll be there on Sept. 7th for a week and I have asthma, so it is of particular concern to me.
Thanks.

[Kim]

Sorry Sanibellover...there's no way to predict.

Right now Red Tide hasn't actually reached Sanibel but is as far as Redfish Pass and Captiva Pass. (see above)

Some areas north, around Tampa Bay have been suffering since early 2005 while others have had short bouts since then. Unfortunately, where it will go or how long it stays is anyone's guess.

Best we can do is keep our fingers crossed it doesn't continue to move south.

[shugy]

Sunset CAPTIVA beach area is terrible--there is almost a three mile area of dead fish on the beach--and about a 12 inch area from the water's edge that is filled with dead fish. The smell is terrible. Our friends' came on Saturday--never have been here what a terrible disappointment. They wanted to surf fish!!! Virtually no one was on the beach today.

[schnauzer]

We just got home Saturday from Sanibel. While swimming in the Gulf at Blind Pass (by Castaways), on Wednesday and Thursday we saw something and didn't know what it was. It appeared to be a foamy-like "line" that stretched from the pier to a little beyond the Castaways area. We could see it slowly rolling in, until it reached the beach both afternoons.

That first day I had been in the water, and after this "line" reached the shore it looked a little "stringy", as if half cooked egg whites were in the water. The second day we were on the beach when it came to shore.

Does anybody know what it was? It only happened once on both those days and stayed in such a straight line as it came to shore; we've never seen anything like it before.

[Kim]

Not much different from what we've already reported

From NOAA, 8/15:
---------------------

A harmful algal bloom has been identified from northern Pinellas to northern Lee County. Today through Wednesday, the following impacts are possible, particularly in the afternoons: patchy low to moderate impacts in northern to central Pinellas County, Manatee, Charlotte and northern Lee Counties; very low impacts in southern Pinellas County; and patchy low to high impacts in Sarasota County.

and from the News-Press:

Red tide bloom moves south
By KEVIN LOLLAR
Published by news-press.com on August 16, 2005

Red tide levels in Boca Grande Pass are down, but the red tide itself has traveled farther south, according to data released Monday.

Researchers from the Florida Fish and Wildlife Research Institute and Mote Marine Laboratory took water samples last week to test for red tide.

"It appears to be diminishing, but we can't say it's on the way out," said Richard Pierce, director of Mote's Center for Ecotoxicology. "The concentrations are encouraging. But it's also expanding south to Redfish Pass."

Red tide is a natural phenomenon caused when the single-celled alga Karenia brevis, or K. brevis, undergoes a population explosion, or bloom.

K. brevis produces a powerful toxin, but under normal concentrations ó less than 1,000 per liter of seawater ó it causes no problems.

When a bloom occurs, the extra toxin in the water can render shellfish inedible, kill fish, marine birds, marine mammals and sea turtles and cause respiratory distress in humans.

Fish start dying when K. brevis concentrations reach 50,000 to 100,000 cells per liter.

Previous samples showed high concentrations, more than 1 million cells per liter, of K. brevis in the pass.

The latest water samples from Boca Grande Pass showed lower concentrations ó 5,000 to 10,000 cells per liter.

Samples taken at Captiva Pass and Redfish Pass had medium concentrations ó 100,000 to 1 million cells per liter.

The current red tide, which was first detected in January, now stretches from Pasco County to Redfish Pass.

In Lee County, the red tide appears to be mostly in the western half of Pine Island Sound.

"We've seen a few dead fish over here, but not many," said Danny Holloway, manager of the Lee County Fishermen's Cooperative on Pine Island. "The red tide is really spotty, little patches. On this side, it's not bad yet."

Fort Myers commercial grouper fisherman Capt. Eric Schmidt has been fishing off Tampa, one of the current red-tide hot spots.

"There's not much going on up here," he said. "There is a 2,200-square-kilometer area that is just dead. There are dead fish floating by left and right. I've seen thousands of dead snook, grouper, tarpon and jewfish.

"I was talking to a guy who was fishing off Fort DeSoto, and he went through 13 miles of dead grouper. It's just bleak."

From Sarasota County to Pinellas County, the red tide has killed crabs, sponges, soft corals and other bottom-dwelling marine organisms as well as 63 sea turtles since June 1.

In the northern part of the red tide there's a low-oxygen zone caused by a thermocline, a layer in the water in which the temperature changes abruptly.

K. brevis doesn't like to swim from one temperature to another, so large concentrations of the organism were trapped in the cooler water near the bottom.

"The red tide killed the fish, which sank and decayed and used up the oxygen," Pierce said. "Because of the thermocline, there's no mixing of the water to replenish the oxygen. It's interesting. It's not unique, but it doesn't usually happen."

[shugy]

There was a storm late last night. I was out on Sunset Captiva Beach today and there are still some dead fish, crabs and eels on the beach but not as many as yesterday. No one in the water and very few people on the beach. Yesterday, when I was walking my eyes were hurting and several people were coughing. Today seemed better. Shelling has not been good since Tuesday. Hopefully the Red Tide will improve soon!!!!
Shugy

[Kim]

FWRI's report will be out later today from sampling yesterday. This is NOAA's latest:
-----------------------------

Thursday, August 18, 2005

A harmful algal bloom has been identified from northern Pinellas to northern Lee County. Today through Saturday the following impacts are possible, especially in the afternoon: low in northern Pinellas, Manatee, and northern Lee Counties; very low in southern Pinellas, southern Sarasota, and Charlotte Counties; patchy moderate in northern Sarasota County. On Sunday the following impacts are possible: patchy moderate in northern Pinellas, Manatee, and northern Lee Counties; low in southern Pinellas, southern Sarasota, and Charlotte Counties; patchy high in northern Sarasota County.

Due to the low oxygen water offshore, more dead fish may be found on the beach than normal. Dead fish smell, while unpleasant, does not produce the same respiratory irritation as red tide.
----------------------------

So, in short, Red Tide hasn't moved any further south.

[Sanibellover]

Well, that is good news. Only about 2 weeks until we arrive so we'll keep our fingers crossed (and say a few prayers) that Red Tide stays away from Sanibel. Thanks for the updates

[Kim]

These are the results from FWRI. The numbers after some of the locations indicate the number of samples taken.

08/15-16
VERY LOWb to MEDIUM - Boca Grande Pass (2)

08/15
LOWb - Captiva Pass

08/17
not present - Captiva Pass, inside

08/17
not present - N Captiva Island, 0.8 to 1 mi W of (2)

08/15
MEDIUM - Redfish Pass

08/17
not present - Redfish Pass, 1 mi W of

08/17
not present - Sanibel Island (2)

I've included a map also. You must be registered and logged in to see pictures. Click on the thumbnail for full size and color.

[shugy]

We just returned this evening but wanted to let everyone know that Thursday and Friday seemed a little better on the beach at Sunset Captiva. Both days we were able to surf fish and caught a lot of little sharks, several stingrays and some other fish. More people were on the beach Friday evening and the smell had diminished. Hopefully each day will improve.
Shugy

[Bitti]

Hello,

Good news for those going to Sanibel Island. I just returned on Saturday Aug 20th and there was no sign of it. The water was beautiful, warm and clear. Earlier around Aug 11th, the draining of Lake Okeechobee left the water brownish (like tea), but that was gone by Monday. We did see dead fish (quite a bit) by Mucky Duck in Captiva, however by the end of the week it was much better. Hope this helps.

Beatriz

[Sanibellover]

Thank you so much Bitti for the report. I couldn't be happier to hear such great news!

[Kim]

08/15-16
VERY LOWa - Boca Grande Pass

08/24
PRESENT - Captiva Pass

08/24
VERY LOWa - Redfish Pass

08/23
not present - Sanibel Island (2)

The key tothe counts is printed on the map below. You must be registered and logged in to see pictures. Click on the thumbnail for full size and color.

[Liz Captiva]

We were there from the 18th-24th, and the red tide was a non-issue... one dead jewfish on the beach near Laika Lane on Captiva, and our fishing guide had to slightly adjust his regular fishing spots to find the best possible water... Nothing like it was in February when there were a lot of dead fish and a persistent cough in everyone's throat! Now that Katrina is passing, go on down and enjoy the quiet season!

[Kim]

Sorry folks, the southern bloom boundry is Sanibel.
I included the most recent sampling map.

You must be registered and logged in to view pictures.
Click on the thumbnail for full size and color.

From FWRI; dated 9/2
---------------------

A red tide bloom continues in southwest Florida. Hurricane Katrina appears to have produced enough turbulence to mix the water column and alleviate low-oxygen conditions offshore but not enough to disrupt the bloom either inshore or offshore. Distribution of Karenia brevis, the Florida red tide organism, remains patchy along the coast from Pinellas to Lee counties, with high concentrations found at selected inshore locations in Pinellas, Sarasota, and Lee counties.

<<snip>>

The possibility of dead fish and respiratory irritation at the beaches will continue as long as the bloom persists.

[Sanibellover]

Kim,
Don't mean to sound dumb, but does that mean red tide is now affecting Sanibel's beaches?

[Kim]

It means that the organism the causes Red Tide has been found in the waters off Sanibel.

I haven't heard any reports yet of dead fish, breathing difficulties or coughing. I spoke to Libby today and she made no mention of any problems. Her only comment was that it is HOT and HUMID! We'll keep an eye out and keep you updated.

BTW...we firmly believe in the old standard of there's no such thing as a dumb question or a dumb asker!

[libby]

I was at Sundial this morning and no one was coughing.
:-)
Libby McMillan